POLICE and consumer watchdogs have swooped on Birmingham travel agents in a probe over Muslims being ripped off when booking religious pilgrimages.

Every Muslim is expected to perform at least one Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia during their lifetime.

But Birmingham Trading Standards have been deluged with complaints from consumers who have paid thousands of pounds for the trip, only to find that the Hajj has turned into a journey from hell.

Yesterday, the team joined officers from West Midlands Police to carry out raids on four shops specialising in Hajj pilgrimages in Small Heath, Alum Rock and Sparkhill.

They fear the firms are misleading customers by falsely claiming to be accredited by schemes such as ATOL (Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing), IATA (International Air Transport Association) and ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents).

The schemes ensure holidaymakers do not lose their money if their travel plans go wrong.

Officers removed posters and leaflets bearing ATOL, IATA and ABTA logos, seized documents and searched computers at the shops, which can not be named for legal reasons. No arrests were made during the raids, but officers said investigations were continuing and prosecutions were likely.

It comes after the team has also carried out a series of raids at other businesses across the country.

Trading Standards Enforcement Officer Mohammed Tariq said: “There is a big problem with Muslims who go to travel agents and pay thousands of pounds for a Hajj package which they are led to believed includes direct flights, guides during their stay, five-star accommodation and high standards of food. But in reality their flights aren’t even booked or they end up staying in slums and eating street food.

“Some of the stories I have heard are heart-breaking. These Muslims have paid their life savings to fund these trips and have been massively let down, –in one case a family was even left stranded in the desert with no food or water.”

Trading Standards Officer Hannah Davies said many rogue travel agents set up ‘pop-up shops’ in the run up to the Hajj season in October and November and then flee with customers’ money without providing the trips.

“They get the money and then just disappear overnight,” she added: “We also find in some cases these trips haven’t even been booked through an official travel agent but by someone who sells them at mosques.”

Halib Pervez, spokesman for the British Hajj Pilgrims Association, which is working with Trading Standards as part of the investigation, added: “In our experience hundreds of people are conned like this from Birmingham every year, we would urge people to be careful about who they book with.

“Our message is people need to check out who they are booking their Hajj with and make sure they do not get conned.”